Staten Island, NY – Renewing a long-standing rivalry, the Wagner men's basketball team opens the month of December hosting former Northeast Conference (NEC) foe, the Monmouth University Hawks. The Seahawks are looking to stop a two-game losing skid after falling on the road to Atlantic 10 members, the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Minutemen, 62-55.
Monmouth enters tonight's game riding a five-game winning streak after defeating Canisius, 94-88 at home on Sunday afternoon. Wagner is 0-2 this season against teams from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), falling to Fairfield in overtime (70-64) back on November 19 and Rider (70-67) on November 26. The Green & White are the lone Northeast Conference (NEC) Monmouth will see this season.
Series History: Tonight's contest marks the 61st all-time meeting between the two schools, with Monmouth holding a 34-26 edge in the head-to-head series. Wagner is looking to snap a two-game skid against the Hawks, last picking up a win back on December 30, 2013 in West Long Branch, a 59-52 triumph. All-time, the Seahawks are 16-13 against Monmouth at the Spiro Sports Center.
All-Time Against The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC): Wagner is 96-210 all-time against the current members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). This season, the Green & White is 0-2 against the MAAC, falling to Fairfield and Rider last month. The only school the Seahawks haven't played from the league is Canisius. Marist, Monmouth, Quinnipiac, Rider, and Siena were all original members of the Northeast Conference before accepting the move to the MAAC in 1984 (Siena), 1997 (Marist, Rider) and 2013 (Monmouth, Quinnipiac). Wagner is .500 or better against two schools from the conference: Niagara (1-1) and Quinnipiac (16-13).
Scouting The Monmouth University Hawks: Selected by the leagues' 11 head coaches as the favorites to take home the 2016-17 MAAC Men's Basketball Championship, the Monmouth Hawks are entering play with a 6-2 record and boasting a five-game winning streak after picking up a 94-88 triumph at home against Canisius on Sunday.
Four players are averaging double-figures, led by unanimous 2016-17 MAAC Preseason Player of the Year, Justin Robinson and Micah Seaborn, who are each tallying 15.0 ppg. Robinson is the team's leader in assists, dishing out 5.6 a contest while Seaborn is averaging 2.1 steals per game. Chris Brady is the team's leading rebounder at 6.5 caroms per game while adding in 11.0 ppg. Je'lon Hornbeak is connecting on a team-best 44.4 percent from the outside while averaging 10.4 ppg.
Hawk-Eyed In Last Season's NIT: Both Wagner and Monmouth were involved in last season's 2016 National Invitational Tournament (NIT). The Seahawks drew the No. 8 seed and took on top-seeded St. Bonaventure in the St. Bonaventure/BYU Quadrant while Monmouth was the No. 1 see in the Monmouth/Florida Quadrant. Wagner defeated the Bonnies, 79-75, for the program's first-ever NIT win while the Hawks cruised past Bucknell, 90-80. Both teams were eliminated in the Second Round, however, with Wagner falling on the road to Creighton (87-54) and Monmouth to the eventual champions, George Washington, 87-71.
Carey Logging The Minutes: Senior guard
Michael Carey (Nassau, Bahamas/Lamar Consolidated [San Jacinto College]) ranks first in the Northeast Conference (NEC) and fifth overall among all 249 ranked Division I players as he is logging 37.7 minutes a contest.
Henson Zeroing In On 1,000 Career Points: Junior guard
Corey Henson (Upper Marlboro, MD/DeMatha Catholic) is closing in on becoming the 43rd member of the 1,000 career points club as he enters the Monmouth contest with 799 career points. After averaging 9.1 ppg in his freshman year (273), Henson has netted a total 526 points between his sophomore and six games of his junior campaign. The last member to enter the 1,000 point club is guard Marcus Burton ['14].
Three-Ball Galore: The men's basketball team have connected on at least one made three-pointer in 374 straight contests. The last time the Seahawks didn't convert a three-pointer was back on February 28, 2004, at home against NEC-foe, Mount St. Mary's in which the Green & White was held to 0-of-13 shooting from beyond the arc.
Controlling The Glass: Through six games this season, Wagner has out-rebounded its opponents in four of those contests. Against UMass Lowell (11/14), the Seahawks out-muscled the River Hawks by an astonishing 22, despite losing, 87-76. Against UMass (11/30), both teams grabbed identical 31 caroms. Last season, Wagner had out-rebounded its opposition by double-figures in 17 games.
Second Chances: Through six games this season, Wagner has averaged 11.7 points off second chance opportunities. Against Rider on 11/26, Wagner scored 21 of its 67 points thanks to second chance opportunities while the Broncs were limited to 12 points in the same category.
Painting A Picture: Wagner has scored 152 of its 402 total points from inside the paint, coming out to 38.0 percent of its total scoring. Against American (11/22), the Seahawks tallied a season-high 40 points in the paint.
Benchmark: In two games off the bench, Junior guard
Corey Henson (Upper Marlboro, MD/DeMatha Catholic) along with freshman guard
Blake Francis (Herndon, VA/Westfield) are averaging 15.0 and 13.0 points per game in reserves roles, respectively. As a whole, the Seahawks' reserves are shooting 39.5 percent from beyond-the-arc.
Up Next For Wagner: The Seahawks embark on a two-game road trip beginning on December 10 as they travel to Baltimore, MD to square off against Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) members, Morgan State at 1:00 p.m. The short road voyage concludes on December 17th at Providence College with a 12:00 p.m. tip.
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